The present invention is used in conjunction with a machine for packing groups of containers, preferably bottles, within open cases.
Lightweight plastic disposable bottles for beverages or other fluids are currently becoming popular in the bottling industry. Such bottles are easily damaged in handling and are not easily packed horizontally into cases. It is more desirable to move the bottles vertically but the lightweight bottles will not fall freely and predictably. It therefore becomes desirable to provide some form of case packing machine that will automatically load groups of such bottles vertically into cases while maintaining full control over the bottles. It also becomes desirable to provide some form of holder for receiving and guiding the bottles as they are moved downwardly.
It is often desirable to pack cases with bottles in inverted positions (open ends down) when there is chance that debris may fall into the otherwise open bottles. The disclosed machines will pack bottles automatically into cases and are selectively operable to invert groups of bottles prior to packing.